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Tundra

Chapter 3: Outlasting Nature's Fury

Felix didn't regret giving his cloak to Mia, not in the slightest. His clothes had stayed dry while he was in the ocean, thanks to Mia's Psynergy, and he knew that she needed the warmth. No, what he regretted was that he had neglected to bring another. The air chilled him to the bone every time the winds blew over the hole in the roof that functioned as the chimney.

Also, the fire was slowly dying. The wood Felix had gathered from the cluster of trees near the ice flow he and Mia had woken up on had almost completely been depleted, and the last thing Felix wished to do was to soak his clothes in the freezing weather to go look for more. Yet, despite his misgivings, he proceeded to awaken Mia.

"Mia," he whispered over the howling winds, tapping her arm gently.

"You need to wake up. I'm going to get more firewood. Make sure you stay awake until I get back."

He waited until Mia seemed reasonably alert before heading out. He cast the Sand Psynergy he had acquired at Gaia Rock to bring himself outside. As his body reconstructed itself, he felt the frigid air even more keenly, and took in the landscape around him.

The area to the north presented a stunningly nihilistic view, an empty plain holding only blanketed snow and certain death. Felix turned his back on the depressing sight, heading southward though series of small snow drifts that led back to the small icefield on which they had arrived. Just to the northeast, he spied, through the thick snow, the pocket of pine trees he had spotted when he first awoke.

As he made his slow progress through the snowfield, Felix became aware of the hunger clawing his stomach. True, there was enough snow falling to keep him hydrated for a lifetime, but he needed food soon, as did Mia. He looked for signs of life and sustenance, but he saw nothing that seemed edible.

He came closer to the trees, the feeling in his toes and fingers completely nonexistent after just minutes of walking through the snow. It was so thick that he could only see the faintest traces of the black smoke rising from his shelter.

The small cluster of pine trees, when he finally reached them, afforded some shelter with which to recuperate for a moment. What Felix saw when he attempted to crawl underneath the boughs of the branches astonished him.

Underneath the limbs and needles were two very large eggs. Both had tough, shiny shells with a deep, ebony color. Their sheen was remarkable, especially given the present conditions, and since there were no parents in sight, Felix picked up the football-sized eggs, along with more firewood, and began to trek back through the thunderstorm-turned-snowstorm where Mia waited for him.


It was a battle of man versus nature, intelligence against fury, and fury seemed to have the upper hand at the moment. At first Isaac had done well, handling what the storm threw at him without great difficulty. Then, something had happened below deck. Unbeknownst to Isaac, Ivan had lost consciousness, and the tempest seemed, to him, to have developed a thirst for blood, churning the sea and sky above and below the boat. Isaac was not exactly sure what had happened at first, but after a few minutes of increased winds and dangerously close lightning strikes, he deduced with a fair amount of accuracy that his crew was at the moment short a Wind Adept.

His plan to glue himself to the deck and the helm had gone rather well, but he was losing ground to the storm every minute. His hands had long since blistered and opened and reblistered, and every moment he remained in the gaping maw of the tempest made him more likely to send him and all of his friends to the bottom of the sea.

Isaac wasn't about to give up, though. He had a boat full of people depending on him – friends so close they were almost family. Isaac was determined to prove that he was worthy of that trust, though the storm seemed equally resolved to thwart him.

He used all of the skill he had developed as a result of piloting Babi's "borrowed" Lemurian ship (which they had since returned to the rightful owners) in the fight for his life, and the lives of everyone on board. He could scarcely see the ocean right in front of him because of the rain, so he had to rely on his instincts.

The battle raged on for hours, and as each wave smashed itself upon the ship, Isaac did not know if he would be alive for the next. Slowly but surely, however, Isaac began to gain the upper hand. The waves came less frequently and less harshly, and the winds slowed. Several hours later, the clouds broke, and the sun shone down on the ocean, a more beautiful sun than Isaac had ever seen.

It was at the point that the Venus Adept noticed that he was no longer alone on deck. He used Psynergy to cut the ropes, but he couldn't turn around, so he bent over and removed his feet from the boots. The number of people behind him came to a total of three: Kraden, Sheba, and Jenna.

"How did we do?" asked Isaac.

"Ivan passed out, Garet got some nasty welts from the steam in the engine room, and Piers can barely stand. We're all fine though. Nothing permanent, if that's what you mean," said Sheba happily.

"Good," he sighed. "I'm glad we're all OK."

He bent over on his hands and knees, almost falling to one knee as he suddenly realized the extent of his fatigue. Sheba ran up to catch him, and after a moment of rest, he stood back up.

"Well?" said Jenna, sounding for all the world like a cobra about to strike.

"Huh?" asked a very confused Isaac.

"What do you mean 'Huh?'" she screamed. "You idiot! I thought Garet was trying to make a joke when he told us what you wanted him for! I never thought you could do anything so stupid! YOU COULD HAVE DIED!"

Jenna inhaled sharply and bit her lip. She searched for more words, but, unable to find any, she cocked back her hand and hit Isaac in the face with a resounding smack before storming off below deck.

Kraden raised his eyebrows, and Sheba whistled, as Jenna slammed the door behind her.

"Ow," said Isaac simply.

"That being said, Isaac, I'm sure I speak for all of us, including Jenna, by thanking you for almost certainly saving all of our lives," Kraden intoned.

"Gee, Kraden, thanks," replied Isaac, his voice thick with sarcasm, all the while massaging the bright red handprint on his cheek.

"She'll get over it," dismissed Sheba. "Come on, let's eat!"

"I'll cook!" exclaimed Kraden, looking fifteen years younger now that he had something to do. He sprinted inside. Isaac and Sheba followed him slowly and sat down at the main table.

Ten minutes later, Kraden took the soup off of the stove, carefully pouring it into three bowls. He brought in the first two, smiling at the image of the expectant and grateful faces of his young friends. He was rather disappointed to find both of them already asleep, heads down on the table.

"Oh well," he thought. "I'll just go get my soup and eat alone, then."

Kraden never did actually act on this thought, but joined Isaac and Sheba in a well-earned slumber.